Great family fishing around Venice.
Capt. Van Hubbard
July 18, 2011
Boca Grande - Saltwater Fishing Report
7-16-11 web report
Tarpon, snook, and more are still available from Venice to Boca Grande.
We needed rain and we are now getting it frequently. The fresh water moves the fish around as salinities fluctuate and keeps out going flows darker with tannin. The incoming tides are still nice clear Gulf waters. I'm not working as much now so some days are catching up at home with a few on the water fishing.
Tarpon are still here, we found plenty around the Big Pass on Friday afternoon. The fish were working from the inside to off shore on the high tide change. We hooked a big one on a mutton minnow by the Oil Docks; but it pulled free on the second jump. Everyone gets excited but you must ease off the pressure as they jump, "bow to the king". Tarpon are so awesome that most folks freeze when they actually hook up the first time. A giant silver missile, six, seven, even eight feet long; launching twenty feet or more, into the sky. Plus line screaming off of your reel with the power of a rocket just might over come all your senses. Your eyes are spell bound and you just can not hear us begging you to react. All you can do is laugh afterwards; especially when it happens to your buddy that was just teasing you. It would be great to video for entertainment back home.
We still have scattered tarpon patrolling our Gulf Beaches from Boca up to Venice cruising into and out of Boca Grande Pass. Some fish are due to feed up into Charlotte Harbor any time. We only have hundreds of fish, not the thousands we have enjoyed but the crowds are gone too! It can be hot but I do have the T Top for shade.
Snook are not thick as last month but we still are seeing schools and some big trophy linesiders. We caught plenty on recent trips last Thursday and Friday. My Uncle Guy Lewis and Betty were visiting from Greenville, South Carolina last week. We found plenty of trout and snook to keep them busy. We even cast netted a mess of mullet for them. We ate all fresh fish we could at the Stump Pass Grille. Then I smoked a mess for them to take home and share with the rest of the family.
The trout are plentiful but we saw large diversity in their sizes. We had loads of almost big enough fish and several slot fish. We even had some nice seventeen and eighteen inchers and a twenty four inch monster. We have plenty of minnows right now but most are small. It looks like we could enjoy great fall fishing if the baitfish hang around as they grow up.
We also have some exciting fishing near shore if we can match your trip to fair weather. Some mornings have been great other windy and rain. We have some mackerel, barracuda, sharks, and more available. Plenty of fishing action, plus beautiful Gulf waters and beaches. Let's Go Fishin' soon. Captain Van Hubbard
Target Species:
tarpon, snook, mackerel, and much more.
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